LENNAR CORPORATION – DEATH TRAP
The abuses Sam suffered at the hands of Lennar Corporation management were at the very least unconscionable. Oscar and his kind used terrorism to excess in the form of emotional and psychological torture that put Sam on a one way trip to the morgue. A trip that is detailed in Lennar Corporation – The Dark Side and Lennar Corporation – Death Star and other Lennar Corporation blogs.
Sam sat in the dimly lit room in a catatonic like state waiting for the inevitable when he was jolted back to reality by a loud, booming voice coming from across the table. Sam refocused his eyes and his attention to come face to face with Oscar’s venomous anger and sadistic hostility. As Sam looked at him, he noticed Oscar’s face was reddish and contorted and his eyes were bulging from their sockets, and his harsh and unforgiving words piercing Sam like a thousand daggers. Oscar’s negativity spilled forth as water from a ruptured dam as he hurled demeaning remarks at Sam, words that were meant to wound Sam’s mortal soul. Oscar stood before Sam as though he presented an imposing and intimidating posture; however, Sam was not interested in such pretentious nonsense, his emotional and psychological suffering was so great he could only think of ending his life to escape the misery inflicted upon him. Oscar bellowed, “You need to change your attitude and you need to do it now! The anger and disgust in Oscar’s voice and in his body language were more than Sam could tolerate. Sam turned his gaze away from Oscar unable to look upon the disgusting creature. Oscar continued his rampage of hell fire and brimstone, but Sam was not listening. From that point forward Sam only heard what sounded like a hive of bees as they busied themselves for the coming of winter. Sam’s mind tuned into itself and all exterior stimuli were blocked the only thing on Sam’s mind was finding peace and bliss in the next life.
Sam couldn’t recall the rest of Oscar’s evil tirade, he lost track of time, and he didn’t know how or when he made it to his vehicle. All he knew is that his entire life was crumbling down around him as he sat behind the wheel completely depressed and dehumanized. Sam didn’t know how long he sat there not thinking not moving, but the clock on the dash told him it 4:45 PM. The cruel, hurtful remarks that came from Oscar flashed through his mind as though they were on a continuous loop. As the words echoed repeatedly in his mind, Sam became convinced he indeed was worthless, not only to Lennar Corporation, but to himself as well. He even had doubts about the rightfulness of his past actions, including the letters and memos he wrote to achieve some measure of accountability. Could Neilsen, Swanick, and Oscar be right, he wondered? Was he creating problems for everyone, even his friends? The strong convictions and beliefs that Sam held for so many years seemed to be eroding rapidly. His despair reached a level he did not previously experience, the ache in his heart was unbearable; he couldn’t take anymore, there was only one course of action, Sam’s decision was made .
Sam’s preoccupation with the events of that fateful day nearly ended in catastrophe while he was driving home, as he headed down the freeway his car began to weave from one lane to another. The horns of other vehicles were blaring warnings to stay clear as Sam nearly met with one collision after another. The resounding echo of multiple horns finally woke Sam from his trance, with the realization he was endangering others; he slowed his wandering vehicle and tried to concentrate on driving. Even though he was depressed and thoughts of self-destruction lingering on his mind, he didn’t want to bring harm to others. The pain Sam was feeling was so great it overwhelmed and consumed his entire thought process and produced only one thought.
When Sam finally made it home he went straight to his favorite chair without saying a word to his wife, Beth. He just walked past her as though she wasn’t in the house. Sam remained in that chair in what might be described a catatonic like state for several hours, occasionally muttering something intelligible. Sam’s thoughts were like a blur of rush hour traffic as his mind went over and over Oscar’s stinging words, which ascended upon him like a horde of killer bees. You are worthless you need an attitude correction and now. You are worthless you need an attitude correction and now. You are……
At first Beth was hurt when Sam didn’t respond to her as he normally did when he entered the house. Her comments to him while he sat in his chair went unanswered again and again. Beth soon realized her husband was in deep trouble and her hurt turned to pain and worry. When Sam didn’t come to the dinner table or accept the tray of food she presented to him, Beth became extremely distraught and worried. She approached Sam and tried to talk to him in a quiet, soothing voice, but he still didn’t respond to her attempts to reach the loving husband she knew so well. Beth’s concern for Sam weighed heavy on her mind, she busied herself with household chores while she watched and waited for Sam to awaken from his zombie like state. Sam remained motionless and as the minutes and the hours ticked by Beth became more and more troubled over Sam’s mental condition. Sick with worry Beth picked up the phone and made the emergency call she knew was necessary to prevent the tragedy she felt certain was looming large on the horizon.
Sam’s mind was spinning as he thought about his lack of value and importance to Lennar Corporation and to the World in general. Where did he fit in, or was Oscar right, was he indeed worthless? After what seemed like many hours Sam’s brooding got the best of him, the pain and anguish reached the boiling point. The shadow of darkness and despair enveloped Sam’s entire being, he felt all hope was lost and there wasn’t a single reason to continue living. The abuse he suffered at the hands of Oscar and other Lennar Corporation managers made him feel like rotting garbage, a thing that doesn’t have a useful purpose and must be thrown out as quickly as possible, least it infest that which is valued. Sam rose from the chair and went to the bedroom, where he kept his pistol and gazed upon his trusted friend, his salvation. Sam removed the pistol from its resting place in the drawer and with cool objectivity he placed the barrel in his mouth. As he did so, he thought about Beth, his family, and his friends, the sweet and tender emotions that filled his heart nearly overcame his desire to die. Sam was torn between the love for his wife and family and ending the torment that was eating him up inside, Sam knew he could not tolerate the abuses at work and gathered all his courage as he pulled the trigger.
There was a loud click, but nothing else, Sam thought what is wrong with me; can’t I do this one thing right? He pulled the trigger again, but for the second time only a loud click. Sam removed the weapon from his mouth and opened the cylinder, it was empty. He forgot to load the damn thing, how stupid could he be? As tears rolled down his face, the empty, useless pistol slipped from his hand and fell to the carpet with a soft thud. Sam was a broken, hollow shell of a person exactly what Oscar and his kind wanted. Unknown to Sam, Beth removed the ammunition from the pistol days earlier and it was her foresight that saved Sam’s life, an unfortunate circumstance for Oscar and his henchmen of death.
While Sam sat motionless in his favorite chair Beth continued to monitor him, her concern for her beloved husband finally got the best of her and she called Brian at his emergency number. As she was dialing the phone, Beth saw Sam get up and head in the direction of the bedroom; she thought he went to bed early as he often did when he was in these kinds of moods, but that nagging feeling continued to gnaw at her gut. After Beth hung up the phone, she went to check on her troubled husband, as she drew close to the bedroom she could hear his outpouring of emotions. Beth hurried to Sam’s side to provide aid and comfort; she sat on the edge of the bed with her husband as he sobbed uncontrollably. While his tears fell like acid rain, Beth did her best to comfort him; she placed her arms around him and held him as tightly as she possibly could. Sam, I love you she said over and over.
When Beth first entered the sleeping quarters, she thought Sam was letting his pent up emotions out and she thought Sam finally realized what was happening to him and he was now ready to begin his therapy anew. At first Beth didn’t notice the pistol on the floor next to Sam’s feet, when she saw it Beth became frantic. Many thought flashed through Beth’s mind including the idea that Sam’s pistol was in fact loaded. No Sam, no you can’t do this. All Sam was able to do was point at the offending object as though calling Beth’s attention to its useless condition. Beth examined the pistol and determined the chambers to be empty at which point her emotions came to the surface and spilled out like an over-full cup. As tight as she was holding Sam, Beth managed to squeeze just a little more, as though she might lose him if she did not. Between sobs she said, “Sam, I love you very much, and you are my life and I am your life we can get through this together. It doesn’t matter what happens as long as we have each other, Sam we can get through anything as long as we stick together. Please Sam, go see Brian again, please, I called his emergency number just now and he said you need to go to the hospital right away. You are a good and decent person and the best husband anyone could ever have, you deserve better than what you are getting from Lennar Corporation.
As Sam looked at his loving wife through bleary eyes, Beth thought she detected a small sparkle in his eyes, eyes that used to be so vibrant and so full of life. Beth and Sam remained on the bed cradled in each other arms for quite a long time as their emotions poured from their hearts. Sam talked to his beloved wife at length about his feelings for her and how he struggled with the decision to end his life. He told Beth how much he loved her and how much she meant to him.
Although Oscar was well aware his abuses were driving Sam to the brink of self-destruction he nevertheless continued his spree of abusive behaviors. The abuses administered by Oscar and other Lennar Corporation managers was spawned by greed, a compelling force that motivated Lennar Corporation management including Oscar to engage in attempts to manipulate, control, and dominate Sam’s life to the point life became meaningless to Sam.
Stuart Miller, President and CEO, Lennar Corporation can be reached at stuart.miller@lennar.com
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